The Streets of London
by Soccer Freak 101
Summary: When life gives you nothing back, you need to make your own turf. Run away when you can...but then again, it all started with running away...
1. Escaping Her

**A/N: hey! This is my first HM fic! I got this idea late last night, so don't be too brutal. It's not that good, but it was an idea. Just decided to get it out there in the open. I know, it's also a short chapter. The first chapter I write to everything is usually short. This is probably the shortest, but I hope you like. **

"_I can't believe you!"_

"_What can't you believe? That I fell in love?"_

"_No! That you fell in love with _her_!"_

_I ran from the house. But once I reached the comfort of the beach, I saw her there. She was my worst nightmare. The one that had haunted my dreams since their first date. No respect, no kindness, and no sense of return. I hadn't been able to face her for a while. And now, since she was marrying my dad, I didn't want to see her ever again._

_But yet, here I was. And there she was._

"_Awe," she said in a mock-baby voice. "Is the wittle baby gonna cry?"_

"_Stop it," I said softly. I couldn't face her. I couldn't look her in the eyes. I didn't even want to talk to her, but I was forced to. _

_Soon, she back-handed me across the face, causing me to fall to the ground. There was a searing pain on my left cheek, in which her big diamond engagement ring had come in contact with. I put my hand to my cheek to feel my blood running onto my fingers._

"_Well?" she asked me sharply. "Are you just going to sit there? Can you at least get up for my benefit?"_

_For her benefit. Everything was always about her. About how pretty she was, about how smart she was, about how sweet she was…I'm sick of it. Why he chose her, I'll never know. But all I do know is that I need to get away—and fast._

_I got up, but not before she could kick me in the stomach for being slow. She wasn't going to quit. I had known that from the beginning. But here's something she didn't know:_

_I wasn't going to quit either._

_Soon I was running, mustering up all the strength in my legs that I could and leading myself away from here. The pain that seared through my legs hurt, but I tried to ignore that. Getting away was my first priority. Dealing with my pain was my second._

_Soon, I collided with someone. I looked up to see my brother standing before me, brushing off the dust on his arms. My loving brother was here. He could help me._

"_I need help…" I managed to say. He took one look at me and gasped._

"_My Lord," he said. "Did…did_ she_ do this to you?"_

_I nodded my head while my tears started to fall. He stared emotionlessly at the ground. He had felt the pain as well, he had told me. He was the only one I could ever talk to. He was an amazing brother. _

"_There's nothing we can do, is there?" he asked quietly._

"_W-what?" I asked. _

"_We can't do anything," he said. "This is what it's going to be like…until we move out and go to college."_

"_No," I said quietly, barely above a whisper. "No, no, NO! You_ can't_ give up! You just can't! You're my brother! You're supposed to protect me!"_

"_I've been trying," he said. "It's just…nothing's working out. Nothing."_

_More tears filled my eyes and ran down my face as I pushed past my brother and continued to run. More pain. Nothing was going right. Why can't anything ever go right? My dad just had to meet that awful woman. That foul beast who thinks she's better than me. That idiotic creature who thinks she can beat up on my just because I'm smaller and because she feels like it. I absolutely hate her! _

_And right now, I hate life itself. _

_I ended up slowing down to a walk when I figured that I was far enough away from her. I didn't know what I was doing, where I was going, but I just knew that I wanted to get away._

_But when you run away, things always have a way of catching up to you._

_I didn't know that she could catch up to me so quickly. I just remember her grabbing my hand and pulling me into the bush. _

"_How dare you run away from me!" she shrieked. "After all I've done for you!"_

"_What have you done_ for_ me?" I asked. "Are you referring to what you've done _to_ me? Because I think the whole world can see that now."_

_I got punched in the stomach for my backtalk. _

"_Don't you dare talk to me that way!" she said. "I am probably the nicest mother a brat like you could deserve!"_

_It happened in slow motion. A book came slamming down hard on her head (we were both kneeling on the hard dirt in the bush) and she was out like a light. I looked up to see my brother there with a hard-cover encyclopedia in his hands. I stood up and hugged him._

"_Come on," he said. "We're going."_

"_Where are we going?" I asked._

_He ended up driving me down to the LAX airport. We stowed away on a plane ride to only God knows where. My brother had been thinking this through over and over in his mind and had finally figured out how to stow away. Sure, we could get arrested, but that didn't matter anymore._

_We were now away from her and on our own. _


	2. My New Life

"Miley…Miley, wake up!"

I sat upright and started panting. I looked to my right to see Jackson, my older brother and best friend.

"What happened?" he asked softly. I just looked at him in the eyes and stood up. He understood and stood up as well.

I had relived my living nightmare last night. No one knows what pain I go through when I have that nightmare. No one knows what pain I went through when I was actually living in the nightmare.

But, then again, no one really knows I'm _alive_.

I live on the streets of London. It turns out that the plane had been heading towards England, so we got off and…we didn't really have anywhere to go.

We sleep under the bridge. No one finds us there. It looked like there used to be a cave under the bridge, but it's covered up with rocks. Jackson and I have been moving rocks whenever we can to see what's there.

Jackson has a job…sort of. He works at a fast food restaurant and gets paid some pounds an hour. It was sort of hard to adjust…pounds compared to dollars. One dollar is worth half a pound or something like that.

And then there's the British accents. I adjusted to that, too, sort of getting one on the way.

We use the pounds that he gets to buy us some food and buy us some clothing.

I'm missing everything about my old home, though. My sophomore homecoming dance would be coming up soon. Lily and Oliver probably already have dates. Lily's been a boy magnet, like, all of freshman year until I ran away. And Oliver had a girlfriend by the time I was gone.

I bet they don't even miss me. And you know who else I bet doesn't miss me? My dad. I bet he doesn't miss me because he has his new, adorable wife Miss Bitch. I hate her.

I also miss my old boyfriend that I had broken up with, Jake Ryan. I miss him a whole lot. He was really, really sweet but sort of self conceited as well. I miss him the most, because I know that he would care what happened to me, even if he was a big movie star.

I bet he cares. He just doesn't know.

"Miley? Come on, get dressed, we've got to get to town."

It was like being a homeless person in the eighteen hundreds. All of my clothes were from a thrift shop, but you could find some cute stuff there. Today's clothes? A pair of faded jeans and a worn out plain pink shirt.

As I dressed myself and walked out from under the bridge, Jackson tossed me a banana. That was all I had for breakfast. It took some getting used to at first, but my stomach adjusted to the small amount of food I ate every day. I now get full after just a banana and I can resist my appetite for up to twenty-four hours.

We walked into town, the people giving us strange looks since we looked really different. Jackson and I ignored them.

I was wearing baggy boy jeans that were like the ones the girl wore in Stick It in the first scene. I also wear a baggy sweatshirt. I have found that baggy clothes are way more comfortable then what I used to wear. And its also easier to run in…especially when you run away from the cops.

You're probably wondering what happened to Hannah Montana, huh? Well, there is no Hannah Montana. In a couple of years, the press will probably track me down and tell the whole world that Miley Stewart was Hannah Montana. And then I'll probably be on one of those has-been shows. But I don't care. I use my talent for other things.

"Hey, Miles," said Jackson. He handed me a guitar. We had saved up for it all summer, and when we had finally gotten it, it paid off.

"Okay," I said. He walked into the fast food restaurant and I sat down outside. I laid the guitar case open and started playing and singing.

"_Today was gonna be the day_

_That they're gonna throw it back to you_

_By now you should've somehow_

_Realized what you've gotta do_

_And I don't believe that anybody_

_Feels the way I do about you now_

"_Backbeat the word is on the street _

_That the fire in your heart is out_

_I'm sure you've heard it all before_

_But you never really had a doubt_

_And I don't believe that anybody_

_Feels the way I do about you now_

"_And all the roads we have to walk are winding_

_And all the lights that lead us there are blinding_

_There are many things that I would like to say to you_

_But I don't know how_

_Because maybe_

_You're gonna be the one that saves me_

_And after all_

_You're my wonderwall."_

It's my favorite song. I love it. And soon, there was a tiny crowd around me. A nice lady threw in one dollar.

"_Today was gonna be the day_

_But they'll never throw it back to you_

_By now you should've somehow_

_Realized what you're not to do_

_And I don't believe that anybody_

_Feels the way I do about you now_

"_And all the roads we have to walk are winding_

_And all the lights that lead us there are blinding_

_There are many things that I would like to say to you_

_But I don't know how_

_Because maybe_

_You're gonna be the one that saves me_

_And after all_

_You're my wonderwall_

"_I said maybe_

_You're gonna be the one that saves me_

_And after all_

_You're my wonderwall."_

It was a good crowd. I made about five dollars and ten cents off of the song.

The crowd was around me all day, while I was singing. And then, by the time Jackson's shift was over, I ended with Good Riddance by Green Day. The song attracted a mother and a daughter, the daughter being seven years old. I started thanking everyone as the five people broke out into applause. I started closing up the case and I heard the little girl tell the mother, "Mummy! Mummy! That girl sounded just like Hannah Montana!"

"Now, dear," said the mother, "Hannah Montana hasn't come out with a new CD in two years. Chances are, there is no more Hannah Montana."

I stood up and carried my guitar away. Some seven-year-old girl was realizing that I sounded like Hannah Montana. Little did she know that I had been Hannah Montana.

Later that day, Jackson and I went to the farmer's market, where I put on another show and made some more money.

It was only on our way back to our little cave under our bridge that Jackson turned to me.

"Miles, I need to tell you something," he said.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Well…" he looked as if this was going to be some real trouble. "I need to quit my job."

"What?" I asked. "Why?"

"They're about to find out that we don't attend the high school I told them we did," he said. "Once they find that our, they'll call some social agent. And then—"

"And then we'll go to some foster home or an orphanage," I finished for him. He nodded. "What are we going to do?"

"Make up an address," he said. "We…we're going to go back to school."

School. I barely knew what that was anymore. School's here in England would be way different than back in America. And wouldn't they cost money? And my clothes…I wouldn't be able to take any humiliation.

"What about money?" I asked.

"The school I lied about is a public school," said Jackson. "It doesn't cost anything."

"School supplies?" I asked.

"We have money," said Jackson. "Just…get all the stuff on sale. That's what we'll do."

"Sounds like a plan," I said once we had reached the bridge. We climbed under it carefully and made our way over to where we had our sleeping bags set up. Then, we walked over to where the rocks were, where we thought the cave was. We started to move some rocks.

"We'll head to the school tomorrow," said Jackson. "I have a day off."

"Okay," I said.

This would be a bit odd. I'd be starting school with my older brother, my only friend (which was probably the biggest change in everything), without Lily and Oliver, without a brand new back-to-school outfit, and without my dad's love.

This will be the year, won't it?

Notice my sarcasm?


	3. Jake Ryan?

**A/N: okay, ignore the song that I wrote. I wrote it specifically for this and it sucks. And don't write a review saying how good the song is because I know it's terrible. Write reviews, but don't mention the song unless you think it's terrible as well. **

I've been playing the guitar a bit too much, I think. I also think I've been reminiscing a little too much as well. The way I play the guitar now, I'm not as into it as I used to get. My songs are slower and sadder, and eventually I'll get really into it, but then I start strumming really hard and angrily, and Jackson will have to come over and stop me.

"What's going on, Miles?" he said one time. All I did was look at him, with my eyes all watery and my face all red, and he didn't ask me anymore.

We were going back to school, where I'm going to make friends and I'm going to learn and…and…

I really just don't want to face it. Last year, when Jackson and I first arrived and were trying to find our home, I wished that I could have gone to school, just to take my mind off of all the hard things that were hurting me on the inside. Maybe even take a home-economics class or something…anything, really.

But now, school seems so distant to me. I can barely remember it. And when I think of school, I think of Lilly and Oliver, my friends. I think that makes me the saddest of all. Jackson and I have been on the run twice, where we've changed our homeless homes to different places, each one much farther away from the last. If I make friends and Jackson and I have to run again, then I'll lose my friends…just like I lost Lilly and Oliver.

Then there's the matter of all the rumors that go around. When I think of that, I think of Ashley and Amber, how they were always making fun of my clothes. My clothes are really something to make fun of now, with my baggy boy jeans and my baggy sweatshirts and my solid-colored shirts.

I looked like a hobo…mostly.

Well, when I think about it, I am like a hobo. Except hobos beg on the streets for money and do nothing but annoy you, while me and my brother decided to be smart, get a job, buy a guitar, and make money. We also started a bank account.

This is the type of stuff they don't teach in school: life. There is no class called life. If there was, I would get an A, because I'm an expert at life. Life's not perfect, and it never gives you what you want. If you want something, work hard at it, and if you're lucky, maybe you'll get it.

Most likely you won't.

So, I continue to strum my guitar, sing out my thoughts towards the world, and make music.

"_It's raining and I don't care_

_I'm crying and I don't dare_

_Tell you anything because _

_You just wouldn't get it_

_Don't ask me anything_

_Don't ask me about everything_

_Ignore me and I'll be fine_

_Ignore me and you won't be mine_

"_You talk so quietly_

_I'm sobbing so heavily_

_And you don't care_

_You just stare_

_You whisper worriedly_

_Not at all comforting_

_Why don't you come and help me_

_Why don't you just leave me be_

"_My hair is wet and my eyes are red_

_Oooh hoo_

_My life is done and I feel dead_

_Oooh hoo  
My toes are numb and life is cold_

_Oooh hoo_

_Why's everything covered in mold_

"_You don't care that I need you_

_You don't care but I do_

_You went off and…and…_AND MARRIED HER!"

I yelled out and started crying once more. Jackson was working and I didn't feel like entertaining today. We started school tomorrow, and I was scared…really scared.

I put my guitar in its case and hugged my knees to my chest, rocking back and forth, shaking uncontrollably.

I don't get it. Why would he marry such a…such a…such a bitch? He would come home from work some days to find me covered in bruises. He would ask, and I would lie…she always told me that my death was coming if I ever told anyone. But why couldn't my dad see the truth? He always used to tell me that "The truth is in the eyes. Look closely, and you can see into someone's soul."

Why couldn't he look into my damaged, banged-up soul? Why couldn't he help me at all?

Whenever I look back, I realize how stupid Jackson and I had been. We should have just turned her into the authorities and have stayed with the cops until she had been arrested and thrown into an asylum, tied up in a straight jacket, and then we would have felt safe. We would have felt good at last. But no one gets it at all…I'm never safe.

I heard a voice and I quickly wiped away my tears. It couldn't be my brother, because my brother never brings someone over (where would he bring someone anyways?) and he never talks to himself. So, I quietly maneuvered myself to the edge of the bridge, where two people were walking and talking…both of them in American accents…sounding familiar.

"I don't think we're going to find her, Jake," said the adult.

"But we have to!" said the teenager. He had recognizable blonde hair, and the hot look of a boy that I hadn't seen in a while.

"Why do we have to?" asked the adult.

"Because, she was amazing," said the teenager. He looked away from the man and out towards where they were walking, which I had a feeling wasn't anywhere in particular. "You don't understand. She…she understood me. I swear, every time she looked into my eyes, I felt like pouring my soul out to her. She was beautiful, and truthful and…and down to earth. And now…I'm never going to see her again."

The teenager was looking at the ground and I recognized him at last. Jake Ryan! What was he doing in England?

The adult stopped walking and stopped Jake. He turned Jake around and looked him in the eye, putting one hand on a shoulder of Jake's. "Look, Jake. There are a lot of things I want to tell you, but none of which are true. So, I'm going to tell you the truth. We're most likely not going to be able to find her. We've been searching for months. She's most likely dead."

Jake shoved the man's hand off of his shoulder. "Don't you dare say that. Miley is not dead. She can't be dead. I know she's not dead, because she's alive. And if you give up, then fine. I'll go and find her."

"Jake," said the man. "I know you must love this girl, but it's going to be really hard to find her. I know you've quit your movies until we find her, but…you're going to need to go to school while we search for her."

I stopped listening and ducked down. He was searching for me…for me! Lilly and Oliver didn't search for me, my own father didn't search for me, no one did…except for Jake. And he's really looking for me!

I considered coming out of the shadows and hugging him, saying that I love him and always will and that I wish we hadn't broken up, but thought against it. He's going to be off at some private boarding school most likely by tomorrow, and I'll be off at a public school. He'll never find me. And I'll probably never see him again.

But I've always been better off on my own. I never begged for street money. I never couldn't find a way of getting food. I've always been smart about what I do.

"Miles? What are you doing?"

The voice made me jump, and I soon realized that it was Jackson.

"Jackson!" I said.

"Yeah, it's me," he said. No matter how much he's changed, you'll still notice a bit of his old, sarcastic self. "I've got a surprise for you."

"What is it?" I asked.

"I've been promoted! I'm now going to be getting two more pounds an hour!"

I jumped up and hugged him. "I'm so proud of you!"

"Yeah," said Jackson. "So, I decided to take us to the mall tonight. I got my paycheck this week and we can afford to go and buy first-day-of-school outfits."

I smiled and hugged him even tighter. "I love you, Jackson."

"Love you too, Miles."

So, the rest of the night was spent at the mall, buying outfits and school supplies for ourselves. I ended up buying a pair of skinny jeans, a white baby-doll shirt, and a blue lace camisole to go underneath. I felt that this outfit would be great for school. I didn't ask for Jackson to buy me shoes because I knew we needed to save our money that we had left for food.

And we were really careful about our money. The clothes that we got were on sale, and I even got a couple of bras for myself (I only have two at the moment). With that done, Jackson and I returned to the bridge, attempted to move the rocks…and actually succeeded in finding a hole.

"What's in there?" I asked as Jackson looked through it.

"There's a bunch of cobwebs," he said. I shivered: even though I've lived by myself for a year, spiders still scare me. "But it's a cave, and there's some hay in it. It would make for some comfortable sleeping."

"When can we move in?"

"After we finish our homework tomorrow, we'll move some more rocks around and, maybe, find a way in."

I nodded. Keeping my new clothes in the bag it had come in, I rolled my sweatshirt into a ball, laid my head down, and fell into a terrible nights sleep, knowing that what lies ahead tomorrow, is either good or bad.

Jackson and I woke up early the next morning, got dressed, and walked to school after having an apple for breakfast.

I was to be entering what was called Year 9. From my understanding, it's equivalent to ninth grade. I'm going to be repeating it because I never finished it…and I need to remember some things.

"Where are your parents?" were the first words out of our counselors mouth that morning.

"They have to work a lot," said Jackson. We had been going over this story with each other for a while, quizzing each other and pretending that we actually lived in a house, not on the streets. "That's why we moved here. We've been moved around a lot due to their work. If only their work paid better."

The counselor nodded and told us to take a seat, which we did willingly. "I understand that you didn't put a phone number down on your applications. Why not?"

"Our parents don't like phones," said Jackson. We had been over this as well. "They believe that any type of phone is the cause of brain cancer and they refuse to use any phone whatsoever."

The counselor nodded once again. "Well, in that case, here are your schedules." She handed us two different schedules, and then she handed us locks for our lockers, and our locker number was on our schedule. "I've made it so that your lockers are next to each other. I understand that when one moves a lot, they might have trouble making friends, so I've put you close to each other to ensure that you two are not alone. Your classes were also made so that you can walk with each other to each class, but eventually leave to head off to different classrooms."

There was a knock on the door.

"Will you please wait on the bench outside of the office?" said the counselor.

"Yes," said a voice.

"Sorry about that," said the counselor. "You two aren't the only new students today. Here, since you arrived early, I'll let you leave now and look around the school, give yourselves a tour."

We nodded, stood up, and left but not before thanking her. On our way out, I took a quick glance at the new student who was waiting on the bench outside of the office.

Oh, my God.

It couldn't be.

"Jackson?" said Jake. I was standing on Jackson's other side, farthest away from Jake, who, for some reason, was sitting on the bench outside the counselors office.

"Jake?" said Jackson in disbelief. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, what are you doing here?" asked Jake. "You and Miley…you've been gone for a year!"

"We had to go," said Jackson defensively and slowly at the same time.

"Where is Miley?" asked Jake desperately. I walked out from behind Jackson and looked at Jake. "Miley!"

He stood up and hugged me. I didn't know what to do. The only person who has hugged me in the past year was Jackson, and getting hugged by a past boyfriend always feels a bit awkward. But, for some reason, getting hugged by Jake felt…I don't know…different? It was like someone cared for me other than Jackson.

"Where have you guys been?" asked Jake. "No one's seen you in a year!"

"No one's looked for us either," I said.

"I have!" said Jake. "I've had people in twelve different countries looking for you two! And you've been in England this whole time?"

"Look, Jake, you can't tell anyone you saw us," said Jackson.

"Why not?" asked Jake. "Everyone's been so worried!"

"Yeah, that's why my dad was the first one looking for us, right?" I said. Jake looked at me and I knew that he could hear the hurt in my voice.

"What happened a year ago?" he asked softly.

"Jake Ryan, will you please come in," said the counselor's voice.

"One second," said Jake. He turned back to us.

"Don't call anyone and tell them that you've seen us," said Jackson. "We'll…we'll talk to you during lunch or something."

Jake nodded and walked into the office.

Now, I was more nervous than before.


End file.
